Karachi: On February 4, 2025, the National Clearing Company of Pakistan Limited (NCCPL) announced a mandatory submission requirement for all Securities Brokers (SB) and Professional Clearing Members (PCM) concerning their Liquid Capital (LC) statements. This directive is in accordance with the Capital Adequacy Requirement regulations, which stipulate the submission of reviewed or audited financial statements, including the LC statement, as of December 31, 2024. These regulations are part of the Securities Brokers (Licensing & Operation) Regulations, 2016, and NCCPL Regulations 2015.

Securities Brokers engaged in various capacities such as Trading Only with limited Custody, Trading & Self Clearing, and Trading & Clearing are required to comply with these submissions. For those whose financial year ends on June 30, the deadline to submit their reviewed LC statements is March 16, 2025. Meanwhile, those with a financial year end of December 31 must submit their annual audited financial statements, inclusive of LC statements, by April 30, 2025.

According to information available from the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX), non-compliance with these timelines may result in enforcement actions as outlined in Regulation 6(6) of the Securities Brokers (Licensing & Operation) Regulations, 2016. This includes potential restrictions on trading facilities, limiting brokers to only close out open positions in a controlled environment if they fail to submit the required statements or if there is a shortfall in the reported liquid capital.

Furthermore, in addition to the reviewed or audited statements, SBs are obligated to submit monthly unaudited LC statements to both the securities exchange and clearing house as per the regulations. Similarly, PCMs are required to continue their monthly submissions of unaudited LC statements to the clearing house in compliance with NCCPL Regulations, 2015.

The NCCPL has emphasized that these submissions will only be accepted during official business hours, up to 5:30 PM, with adjustments in the NCCPL systems occurring within two working days following submission. The designated market category for these submissions is crucial for maintaining regulatory compliance and operational integrity within the financial ecosystem.